Early start

From a second semester SRNA, enjoy your life. There's plenty of reading to come, I promise!

Absolutely enjoy your life because it will be unrecognizable later. You will have plenty of time to study because study time is also built into your schedule along with all that you do on your own time. Now is the time to relax, celebrate your admittance and plan your future including financially. Congrats on your acceptance

you are going to be a great nurse because your OCD tendancies are showing already. Nurses have to be detailed oriented! The best advice has already been given, but if you just can't stand it start searching the links offered by allnurses.com to get into the lingo, current issues, etc. Try some of these links too, for extra info, but don't get bogged down in it all. Learn to appreciate the moment you are in and right now you are in a moment of peace, I hope.

http://www.nursing.about.com

http://www.icufaqs.org

http://www.criticalthinking.org

http://www.iss.stthomas.edu/studyguides/selfassessment.htm

http://www.ismp.org

Congradulations on your acceptance! I have to agree with everyone else, HAVE FUN WHILE YOU CAN!!!! I am a second semester RRNA student at TCU and did not understand the time comitment -lets just say I grossly underestimated it. You can PM me if you have any specific question.

I wonder how many times this question has been asked?

I agree with all of those previous...enjoy life while you still have one!!! I am currently a RRNA in my second semester at TCU. You will love the program, however, will have minimal time to enjoy family, friends, etc. once you get started! :rotfl:

I am a BSN student and have ALWAYS attempted to pre-read my texts. That is because I like to read the material AT LEAST twice, and it is difficult to do that in the course of a busy semester. I think this is a logical, approach for anyone who wishes to excel, and is not gifted with a superior intellect (or even those that are should they wish to improve still further). I have found that when I "pre-read" retention is vastly improved if supplemental study materials (study guides, and or relevent questions WITH answers if possible) are available. It helps to "know what you don't know" so that you can then focus on the material that is more difficult for YOU to get down. Also, I like to employ the "multiple perspectives" approach, which is to read more than one text on the SAME subject. That is because different authors are better (or worse as the case may be) at explaining a specific, subject detail. Again, this is an approach that requires time, and getting an early start can facilitate this being possible.

You may also consider integrating current anesthesia articles into your "pre study". Kevin McHugh/CRNA gave the link to a CD/ROM a year or so ago that has virtually EVERY article written in the field for approximately the past five years. I will look later and see if I can find that post as it may be useful for you. Some may feel that your plan is not necessary and perhaps it isn't. However, this is one of the biggest events (your attending CRNA school) of your life and you want to maximize your opportunities for success. It is said that good attorneys like to never ask a question to which they do not already know the answer. I would submit that good students should seek to be in position to never have a question or concept presented that they are not prepared to answer if called upon (understanding of course that this goal is not obtainable, but that it's pursuit will make you a better student).

Here is the post that I referenced above with the link where you can still hopefully buy the CD/Rom.

Actually, I can no longer find it at the allheart.com website. Try this one instead http://www.medicalamazon.com/11942.html If you end up buying this program one way to use it would be to read a chaper from your anesthesia text, and then find a couple of articles relevent to that chapter. If you read these articles and then force yourself to write a short summary it will go a long way towards reinforcing the material presented in that chapter. Furthermore, your article summaries will serve as a "quick review" that you can refer back to during the semester (save your summaries as word files). Doing a couple hours a day of "leisurely" study now, may save you significant stress later. In addition, you have the "luxury' of learning and exploring the material to your satisfaction rather than "sprinting" towards the arbitrary deadline to exam time set by some professor. Also, consider going back and reading most of the "clinical discussion" questions featured on this thread as they may provide insights not commonly presented in a textbook format. If you do this let me know how it works since one day I aspire to either be in your shoes or have successfully helped prepare my wife to be in them in my place.

Registered: Apr 2002

Location: AKA Conservative Member

Posts: 1174

Post #2

You might check out The Electronic Anesthesia Library (TEAL). It's a comprehensive library of research on one CD ROM of all anesthesia research published in five prominent journals in the last five years. However, its pretty expensive. You can order it here or other places:

http://www.allheart.com/0781727170.html

Kevin McHugh

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"Contemplate the mangled bodies of your countrymen, and then say, 'What should be the reward of such sacrifices?' ... If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen!" --Samuel Adams